This year has been quit an adventure for our house hold! With the birth of our first child (Esther Ruth Gruntmeir) we have found a deeper love for not only one another, but this brand new person! Esther is the light of our lives and the joy of our day…It is difficult for me to put into words the emotions I have for her! Guess this is where the saying, “you’ll understand when you’re a mother” comes in.
Let me start from the beginning…
In January 2011 Jeff and I decided to get on a healthy track of eating right and doing what’s best for our health/bodies. With that mind we also decided to try for our first child. After much discussion on when the “right time” was (if any) we figured there was no such thing as the “right time” and we were ready for the next step in our marital relationship! We used the “Natural family planning” method of birth control for 8 months, charting and keeping close record for each. Finally, fall was the big moment!!! We were told that there is no such thing as planning for a child, and perhaps this is a correct assumption, however it must have also been Gods right time also because all went as planned and Jeff and I were well on our way to becoming first time parents! Throughout my pregnancy I had so many emotions and thoughts about what kind of a mother I would be, would I love this child and would I raise her right?! God blessed us with a very smooth and healthy pregnancy…I think He knew what he was doing. Jeff and I had so much fun attempting to bond with her in the womb and feel her kick with excitement when we spoke to her! Needless to say once Esther was born God filled our hearts with so much love, I swear it was over flowing and any fears that I had quickly diminished.
After nine long months it was time for us to welcome our new bundle into the world. Esther was born a week and one day after her due date, weighing 9 lbs and was 21in long. From the start Esther has been a good sleeper and eater!!! I have been very fortunate to be able to breast feed her with no complication or troubles, God is good! She continues to gain weight and be in the 95th percentile with an amazing immune system thus far. We are so thankful for our many blessings and especially for this holiday season. This will be Esther’s first Thanksgiving and Christmas with us as a growing family.
Throughout this exciting time for our family Jeff had been working at Food ProTech and worked very long hours. He worked around the clock 7 days a week, was exhausted, over worked and under paid! When Esther was born Jeff was only able to take off 3 days including her birthday and was back to work that same week. For the past 7 months he had been sending out resumes and looking for an opportunity to be able to spend more quality time at home and watch his daughter grow. Our prayers were answered mid October when Jeff applied for a position at OSU vet Teaching hospital. He was interviewed and asked when he could start that very same day. He wrote his letter of resignation, collected his vacation and sick leave hours (which were never used in the 2 years he worked at Food ProTech) and took a full week off between the end of his old job and start of his new! He is now employed at OSU, working under Dr. Susan Little, professor and the Krull-Ewing endowed chair in veterinary parasitology. Not only is Jeff able to be home more and spend time with us but he is able to enjoy the job he has and works with an exceptional group of people! We plan on spending this Christmas break together as a family from December 23rd- Jan 2nd at home for the Holidays!!!
Matthew 21:22 ~ “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
As for me, I have been working hard in school full time finishing up my prerequisites for Vet school and am almost to my goal! I will be able to apply for vet school fall 2012. This semester has been very trying with a new baby, finding time to study and spend time with her has been definitely a balancing act but has proven rewarding in the end. Thanks to my mother (Grandma Thompson), who helps watch Esther in the mornings while I am in class and a nanny In the afternoons, I have managed to balance my responsibilities as a mother, wife and a student and am making A’s in all of my classes maintaining a 3.6 GPA accumulative. I have enjoyed being a student these past few years and working for something that I am passionate about. Jeff also plans on taking a few classes beginning next fall at OSU to work towards his masters. This job will allow him to take classes and will pay for his tuition.
With so many new changes in our lives we continue to stay focused on our growing relationship with God and each other! Our marriage has reached an all time high because we have chosen to put God in the center. When I look at my husband I know that God made him just for me, that he is the one I want to share forever with and explore eternity by my side. Jeff is my best friend, my strength, my quite time, my helping hand. He is patient, kind, slow to anger, everything I love…he is my “everything,” and God is our solid rock and foundation in which we stand! (Matthew 7:24-25)
1 Corinthians 13:4-7~ “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres.”
Our hope is that you will continue to read our family blog and watch the “Gruntmeirs Grow” each step of the way on this journey called life. (I intend on posting each month on new developments in our home.) May you all have a Blessed holiday Season, from our family to yours!
“Almighty God, giver of all good and perfect gifts. . . .
Be within us to strengthen us; be without us to preserve us; be over us to shelter us; beneath us to support us; be before us to divert us and behind us to bring us back; and be around us to fortify us. Throughout this holiday season remind us of the true reason for the season and let us give thanks to you, giver of life and of love; through Jesus Christ our Lord and Redeemer. Amen.”
